Commission invests €1bn in high-speed broadband

€1bn to be invested in high-speed broadband

The European Commission has proposed a new €5 billion investment in energy and internet broadband infrastructure in 2009-2010, as part of the EU recovery plan.

Some €1 billion of the money will be invested in broadband, to extend and upgrade high-speed internet in rural communities. The aims is to provide 100% internet coverage in Europe by 2010.

Development and adoption of advanced broadband services is an essential requirement for the widespread deployment of e-health and telecare services.

The Commission said the extension and upgrading of high-speed internet infrastructure is an economic and social imperative. The European Economic Recovery Plan set out a goal of developing broadband networks to achieve a full 100% high-speed internet coverage by 2010.

By the end of 2007, broadband connection was available to around 93% of Europeans, mostly in densely populated areas. However, 30% of the EU rural population still has no access to high speed internet.

At the start of 2008, on average, more than half of European users enjoyed advertised internet speeds above 2 Megabits per second (Mbs), which is considered the minimum to enable advanced services like television over the internet, and about 10% of users had access to more than 10Mbs.

Ensuring high-speed Broadband internet connection is expected to create 1 million jobs and boost the EU’s economy by €850 billion between 2006 and 2015.

The Commission says it can help make businesses and public administration more efficient by enabling organisational innovation and facilitating access to markets.

The new Commission investment money will be targeted via the existing EU’s Rural Development Fund to cover the "white spots" on Europe’s broadband map (30% of the population in rural areas who do not have broadband access).

Commission President José Manuel Barroso said the EU recovery plan is all about ‘smart investment’, to stimulate the European economy by providing information highways in rural communities.